Swansea beats Bradford to win first major trophy
Swansea thrashed fourth-tier club Bradford 5-0 to win the League Cup final.
LONDON (AP) - Swansea marked its centenary season by collecting its first major trophy, outclassing fourth-tier club Bradford to win the League Cup final 5-0 on Sunday.
Nathan Dyer and Jonathan de Guzman scored twice, and Michu also netted at Wembley Stadium to secure the biggest victory margin ever in the final of English football s second-tier knockout competition.
"After 10 years of hard work and the long journey we have been on, this is the pinnacle," said Swansea captain Garry Monk, who has been with the club since it played in the fourth tier. "We have deserved to put a major trophy in the cabinet."
It was the first time a Welsh club won an English cup since Cardiff s success in the 1927 FA Cup, and denied Bradford a fairytale conclusion to its remarkable cup run.
Bradford became the first fourth-tier team to reach a major final since 1962 by knocking out Premier League sides Arsenal, Aston Villa and Wigan.
But the team never looked competitive at Wembley, and its first shot on target didn t come until the 87th minute when Gary Jones struck straight at goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin.
By then, the northern club, which has been in free-fall since exiting the Premier League in 2001, was already losing 4-0 and down to 10 men.
Goalkeeper Matt Duke was sent off in the 56th minute before De Guzman scored his first and Swansea s fourth from the penalty spot.
The victory capped an incredible ascent for Swansea over the last decade. The club only avoided dropping out of the professional league structure on the final day of the season in May 2003, but then re-gathered and went from the fourth tier to the Premier League by 2011.
Now Michael Laudrup s side, widely admired for its attacking football, will be playing in next season s Europa League as well.
Swansea will experience few matches as easy as this, which was never a contest as the gulf in class was clear from the start.
Bradford struggled to break up Swansea s slick football and when they did try to venture forward, left themselves exposed at the back.
Swansea capitalized to full effect and went in front in the 16th minute.
Wayne Routledge gained possession inside his own half, strolled through the Bradford defense unchallenged and put the ball out to Michu on the left flank.
Duke did parry Michu s initial shot, but Dyer pounced on the loose ball and sent it into the net from close range.
Dyer was also the creator of the second as Ben Davies eventually picked out Pablo Hernandez. Hernandez then slotted the ball through Carl McHugh s legs and Michu stabbed into the net to claim the 19th goal of his debut season for Swansea.
Bradford didn t manage a single shot in the first half, and was further behind two minutes after the break.
Dyer charged forward unchallenged from the halfway line and played a one-two with Routledge before curling the ball beyond Duke.
Duke s final came to an end when he was sent off for bringing down Michu in the penalty area.
Dyer clearly wanted to take the penalty to complete a hat trick, and argued on the pitch with De Guzman, the designated penalty taker, in the only low point on a day that was a true celebration of football in front of 82,597 fans.
De Guzman did take the spot kick and dispatched it past McLaughlin.
De Guzman was on target again in stoppage time, bundling the ball into the net from close range after meeting a cross from Angel Rangel.
